Apparatus for blast furnace control



June 9, 1931. J. F. AUSTIN ET AL APPARATUS FOR BLAST FURNACE CONTROL Original Filed Aug. 30, 1927 4 Sheets-Sheet l 11 40 M Ki.

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ainmnjj ATTORNEY June 9, 1931. J. F. AUSTIN :1- AL 1,809,324

APPARATUS FOR BLAST FURNACE CONTROL Original Filed Aug. 30, 1927 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 WE T2 RS BY amid ATTORNEY June 9, 1931. J. F. AUSTIN ET AL APPARATUS .FOR BLAST FURNACE CONTROL Original Filed A g 30, 1927 4 Sheets-Sheet. 3

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' APPARATUS FOR BLAST FURNACE CONTROL Original Filed Aug. 50, 1927 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 ATTORNEY metallurgical blast furnace.

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Patented June 9, 1931 UNITED STATES PATENT oF cr.

JoHN r. AUSTIN, or URRAY, AND DONALD H. MCINTOSH, or SALT LAKE my, UTAH,

AssieNon-s T AMERICAN SMELTING AND REFINING COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.',

A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY APPARATUS ron BLAST FURNACE CONTROL Application filed August so, 192?,Scrial No. 216,352. Renewed Novemb er 14, 1930.

The invention relatesin general to the art of metallurgy, and more particularly, toapparatus for controlling the voperatlon of a According to the lnventlon, the operation of a metallurgical blast furnace is controlled in a simple and eflicient mannerby sampling 'the gases in the furnace at frequent intervals and then adjusting the fuel feed or blast or both in accordance with the state of the furnace as indicated from the samples. According to the invention the sampling point or zone is that point or zone in the furnace which is most sensitive to changes in the condition of the furnace,-and,is located in the charge somewhere between the tuyeres and the fiue. I

The apparatus for carrying out the-inven- .tion may comprise a suitable sampling tube which is'inserted preferably through the top of the furnace to communicate with the criti- Suitable cooling Lmeans may be provided to keep the tube from burning out N dueto the intense heat of the furnace. The

sampling tube may have connected therewith suitable gas analyzing apparatus for analyzing the sample ofgasand also a suitable source of compressed air for blowing out the ,tube at frequent intervals. A "suitable plunger passing through the sampling tube may also be providedto prevent the sampling tube from clogging up. The tube maybe made to operate as anauxiliary tuyere ifde sired. Furthermore, suitable apparatus may a be connected to the sampling tube sothat the porosity ofthe charge may be measured from time to time. a

Various other features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following particular description and from an inspection of the accompanyingdrawings.

Although the novel features which are believed to be characteristic ofthis invention will be particularly pointed out in theclaims appended hereto, the invention itself, as to itsfobjects and advantages, the mode of its operation and the manner. of its organization may be'better understood by referring to the following description taken in 'co'nnection tube and associated apparatus;

part thereof, in which i I Fig.1 is a section of a. well known type of blast furnace equipped to practice the. invention; Fig, 2 is anelevation partly in. section of the sampling tube and associated apparatus; Fig. 3 is a top plan view ofthe sampling with the accompanying drawings forming a I Fig. 4; is a top plan view of the furnace illustrating, more orjless diagrammatically,

the associated apparatus;

. Fig. 5 is a detail showing the mechanism .for actuating the plunger; and

Figs. 6,7 and 8 are diagrammatic views il'- lu strating the operation of the plunger actu- V atmgi mechanism. i i

' blast furnace is illustratedwith which the nvent on may be practiced. This furnace, which maybe of the type used-for smelting lead ores, may comprisetheusual shaft 1 supported by a plurality of pillars 2. The shaft may be provided witha flue opening 3 and. with a fire brick lining 4. Located "between the pillars is the base, or crucible 5 the furnace, and extending between the base and. the shaftlining isa waterjacket 6, 7 suitable means (not shown )"being provided a for circulating cooling water. Arranged "around; the peripheryatthe lower part-of the waterjacket dis a seriesiof tuyeres 7,

these tuyeres'being supplied with an air blast inanydesired manner.

' Suitable I-beams 8 for supporting the roof 9, areprovided at the top ofthe furnace, theroof having'the' usual opening 10through whichthe charge'is fed. Disposed across'the opening is an inverted channel iron 111 Dis posed within the furnace and below the charge opening is a spreader'12 which is used "for 7 maybe charged and operated. in: any approved of metallurgical furnace and is notlimitedto thevparticular-furnaceshown. The furnace manner known in the art.

Referring now more particularly to Figs. 2 and 3, the sampling .tubeflfigmaycomprise an outercasing or jacket 14 having a cylindrical side wall 15 andend-Walls 16' welded therein. Disposed within theouter casing 14 'is an "inner "tube 17 passing through both .upper and lower end walls, and secured therein, Liocated withinthe outer casing 14 and at thebot'tom is a i'ingoffir'e brick 18 which ,is suitably held therein by means of setscrews 21inntilitis fused in posi'tionbythe heat of the furnace.

Also "connected to the router casing 1'4 is a pair otwater cooIingpipes, thegintakepipe 22 being extended through the "upper end wall '16 to almostthe 'bottom of the casing, and

the outlet pipe 23 "being ekten'ded merely 'tliroiighth'e upper wall-116. I v

. Connected to theinner tubefl'l' is 'a' 'T fitting 24, the lower endiof the fitting "being screwed onto the innertube andth'e upper endf'being provided with a disc .25 having anopening thro jugh whichextends a plunger rod 26 ihavin'gan eye 27"at itsupper end. A-packingf2 8 issarranged in the upper end ofkthe T-fitting,"and a gland 29 is threaded into the fitting to compress the packing against the '{plunger -rbd to make a tightfjoint. 11%. 'con- I meeting 30 is'ledofifrom'tlie'side of the fitting as shown.

J st belowthe top of the casing {141a collar 31 is provided, .the'collar'beingmade up of two halves suitably cl'amped "together 1 and provided with holes jthrough which links '34 are threaded ("see Fig. 1 ,LthelinkseXtending up through the spreader .12 andbeing afiixed to the channel iron 11 as shown.

' Referring now inoreparticularly to 4,

"the inlet pipei'22 tor the cooling water is I provided with ayalve 3'5 as'shown, the out "letpipe- 23bein'g shown as led away from the furnace. "The" connecting "pipe '30 leading away from the furnace is shown asdividinginto two branches-36 and'37,*each branch being ,prdvided with :a valve "38 and 39.

Branch 536 lis connectedeto a supply of compressed air and has a pressure gage connected "thereto ion the :furnace gside of "valve 88.

Branch 37 rise connected to the gas analyzing apparatus awhichflmay :beof the recording, graphic type: or any 1 other well known type.

*Mounted within the channel l1 and direct- ;lyover the plunger rod26-is a pulley 40over {whichpassesa cable 43 extending from the plunger rod, the cable extending along the tube clear of soot and solid particles.

channel to a pulley 44 by which the direction of the cable is changed at right angles, the cable then extending to a pulley 45, and thence to an operating arm 46.

Mounted at the side of the'furnace is a 1 support '47 having a bell crank lever 48 mounted therein and also a. cam 49 in the formof a wheel having a notch 50. One

end ofthelever 48 comprises the operating arm 46,. and the other end is provided with a roller 51 which cooperates with the cam.

.As'the'ccam rotates in the direction of the arrow in Figs. 6, '2' and 8, it will be seen that the-operating arm 46 will alternately pull the cable 43 and suddenly release it,

"the movement of-the cable being communicated to the plunger rod to keep the inner The plunger rod is provided with across bar 52 see 5) from which suitable weights 53 are'suspended to aid the plunger rod in its *downwardmovement.

In order to practice the invention using 'theapparatus illustrated, the sampling tube 13 is insertedin the furnace in the manner shown in Fig. 1, the lower end being in the charge at the critical or sensitive Zone. The cooling water will be circulated and the valve 38 will be closed while the valve 39 willbe "CPQ "The plunger actuatin mechanism 'will'be working and samples orthe furnace gases may pass out of the branch 37 into suitable analyzingapparatus indicated dia- "grammatically "for analyzing the various ele- 'ments present'inthe gases, such as the carbon dioxide and carbon -monoxide. justments may then be made in the supply Suitable adof tueland the supply of air, 'or'in both,

"in accordance with the composition of the "furnace gases. "madevery frequently'since the furnace gases may be analyzed very quickly.

These adjustments may be ."The best and most critical zone is found 'by placing the-samplingtube in the furnace, 'andpurpose'ly changing the proportionof air and fuel and noting-its effect on the samples taken from the sampling tube. "lv'henthe most criticalZone has been found, the sampling tube 21s fixed permanentlyin position. The samp'llng tube 1s made of rough iron and is so arranged that it will'not burn out,

will not clog and will not flux with the material of the charge. The sampling tube can be made comparatively inexpensively and canhave comparatlvely long lifeealwayso-pcrating satisfactorily.

'The method according to'the invention gives .the'accurate condition of .the furnace at all times, and since the furnace is'ad- ,justed :inaccordance with each analysis, the efficiency of the furnace is greatly increased.

Furthermore, the coolingaction of the tube in the furnace holds the reduction zone low, thus decreasing tendency for blow holes to occur, and thereby making for a more 'un'ialigned branches, a packing box included in form furnace operation. Furthermore, the sampling tube may operate as an auxiliary tuyere when the valve 39 is closed, and the valve 38 is opened to blowout the dirt accumulations, this also having a beneficial effect on the running of the furnace. In addition, the sampling tube may be used to measure the porosity of any given charge by noting on the pressure gage the pressure of the blast necessary to blow air through the tube after blowing out the tube.

Thus a method and apparatus has been disclosed by which a blast furnace may be controlled in a simple and efficient manner to give improved results. Samples of gas can be taken as frequently as desired from the selected critical zone and the gas can be analyzed very quickly. The furnace may then be adjusted as indicated by the samples taken. Thus a furnace can be run at all times at a maximum rate of efficiency, resulting not only in a saving of fuel but in an improved smelting action. The use of the sampling tube as an auxiliary tuyere also gives beneficial results and 1ts use to measure porosity of the charge is also of advantage. The apparatus is built ruggedly to withstand the severe operating conditions. The sampling tube will not readily burn out or clog up and will give long and eflicient service.

Although certain novel features of the invention have been shown and described and are pointed out in the annexed claims, it will be understood that various omissions, substitutions and changes in the form and details of the apparatus illustrated may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What is claimed is: 1

1. A sampling tube comprising an outer tubular casing having an upper end wall and a lower end wall, said lower wall being spaced from the lower end of the casing, an inner tube passing through said end walls, a T-fitting having one of its aligned branches connected to said inner tube, a plunger rod disposed loosely in said inner tube and said the upper of said aligned branches, water pipes connected to said upper end wall, a lining within said casing below said lower end wall, a connecting pipe secured to the third branch of said T-fitting, and a supporting collar clamped around said casing.

2. A sampling tube comprising a cooling jacket, an inner tube passing through said jacket, a T-fitting having one of its aligned branches connected to said inner tube, a plunger rod disposed loosely in said inner tube and said aligned branches, a packing box included in the upper off said aligned branches, and a connectingv pipe secured to the third branch of said T-fitting. 1

3. A sampling tube comprising an outer cooling jacket, an inner tube passing through said jacket, and a plunger passing through said innertube. i

4. In combination, a metallurgical blast furnace comprising side walls having a flue near the top thereof and tuyeres near the bottom thereof, a roof having a feed opening, a crucible at the bottom of the furnace, a distributor under said feed opening for distributing the charge, and a sampling tube suspended from said roof and passing through said distributor into the furnace.

5. In combination, a metallurgical blast furnace having a flue and a feed opening near the top and air blast tuyeres near the bottom, a sampling tube having its inner end within said furnace, a source of compressed air and sampling apparatus for connection to said sampling tube, said tube being permanently in position in said furnace, and means whereby said tube is used forwithdrawing samples of furnace gas at intervals between which said compressed air is forced into said furnace through said tube to keep the tube from clogging and to cause said tube to act. as an auxiliary tuyere.

6. In combination, a metallurgical blast furnace having a flue and a feed opening near the top and air blast tuyeres near the bottom, there being a charge of ore and fuel in said furnace, a sampling tube having its inner end in a zone between said tuyeres and flue within the body of said charge, said zone being critical to change of smelting condition within the furnace, a source of compressed air and sampling apparatus for connection to said sampling tube, said tube being permanently in position in said furnace, and means whereby said tube is used for withdrawing samples of furnace gas at intervals between which said compressed air is forced into said furnace through said tube to keep the tube from clogging and to cause said tube to act as an auxiliary tuyere.

In testimony whereof we have hereunto set our hands.

JOHN F. AUSTIN. DONALD H. MGINTOSVH. 

